


Someone like me

by CrazyDemigod666



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Ancient Greek Religion & Lore Fusion, Fluff and Angst, Inaccurate Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Inspired by Eros and Psyche (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), M/M, This is not as brutal like the original myth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:14:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27316090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrazyDemigod666/pseuds/CrazyDemigod666
Summary: Love is a curious thing. It exists in many ways: familial, platonic, self-love, committed love, flirtatious love...So many different forms and shapes, it’s hard to tell them apart sometimes. One thing is the same, however. The heart that holds and distributes it.Or, Janus has always made other people fall in love, the Beast among gods, feared and revered. Never did he think he could fall in love himself, with a mere mortal prince nonetheless.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 6
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Salutations everyone! I hope you like my retelling of the myth of Eros and Psyche, as it has always been one of my favourite myths.  
> It's not quite like the original myth, considering I am putting the Sides as gods in here, and I will take a, creative route on the story so to speak.
> 
> No TW applies except maybe mention of gore, that's Remus being Remus, but should there be anything else, please tell me and I will add it!
> 
> Note: The way I write Aphrodite is that they are ever changing, for beauty changes with the second. Therefore I will use different pronouns and titles all throughout the story.
> 
> Enjoy!

Love is a curious thing. It exists in many ways: familial, platonic, self-love, committed love, flirtatious love...So many different forms and shapes, it’s hard to tell them apart sometimes. One thing is the same, however. The heart that holds and distributes it.

He had seen it all.

Passionate love however, or romantic love, true, brash and bold eros, that is the most dangerous one of them all. It ravishes, consumes, encircles the limbs and mind, turning statues to dust and ore to solid iron. It’s wild and carefree and incredible, yet also ruinous and unforgiving.

He should know, as the son of Love and War, how chaos is veiled by beauty and grace.

For he was Eros, god of Love.

Right now, however, he was Janus, walking as a god amongst the people of the kingdom before him.  
For millennia, he had struck the hearts of mortals and gods alike, creating both bliss and ruin, sometimes at his own wishes, sometimes to please the other gods.

He needn’t bother meddling with the humans, or targets some of his fellow deities would joke. He could simply fly over, feathers rustling undetected, job well done. But that wouldn’t be very entertaining, would it?

No, he liked being Janus, more so than Eros, because then he could really see what his shots could do, the good and the bad.

Did he regret some of it? Sometimes. Wars were often fought, supposedly in the name of love, but when your parents are Aphrodite and Ares, should he be surprised?

Today however, he had another reason to walk the streets of Meraki. A job given to him by Aphrodite themselves. 

_“The king and queen have asked my priestess for aid, trying to find a suitable suitor for their youngest. I’ve consulted with Apollo and I would like you to take him away, to find him a lover elsewhere as he can not find it in the kingdom.”_

_“Why must I take care of him, then? Surely this prince can walk or take a horse to whatever neighbouring kingdom lies close by?”_

_“Because, my son”, they walked over to him, “the god of prophecies has informed me a ‘winged serpent shall take him to his love’. Does that ring a bell?” they stroked his golden scaled cheek._

_He sighed, smiling softly. “I suppose I shall go down and take care of it.”_

_Their appearance shimmered in the golden morning light as Apollo strode by, as if to say “you’re welcome”._

_“You’re taking on a new form already?”_

_“I am?” They looked at their reflection in the base of a fountain, revealing a strong jawline, stunning dark bronze eyes, mahogany locks softly brushing against their olive coloured skin._

_“Humans never cease to amaze me. What do you think this one should be called? They are quite handsome.”_

_“Mother, you are always handsome.”_

_“Well, that much is true, but I believe this one has something more sophisticated to it, in contrast to the blonde muscular one a few decades ago. Remember that? I quite like this new preference humans have in physical beauty.”_

_They admired their new visage a bit more._

_“I think Roman would fit, don’t you think? Being the deity of Romantic love and such”_

_“If you say so”, he readied his quiver and bow. “It suits you. Anything else before I go?”_

_The deity took him gently by his shoulders. “For you to be safe and happy. Alright then, off you go. And remember.”_

_He spread his wings, his white plumage appearing golden against the gleam of his scales. “I know, I know. Don’t fall in love.”_

And there he was, on his way to take away the young prince to a distant land. All in the name of love. He did find that phrase overrated, sometimes.

As he talked to the people, he learned the prince was incredibly beautiful, compared to his mother often, yet never taking anyone’s hand in marriage.  
Suitors would come to admire his beauty, but were already betrothed before they had even left the kingdom again.

He had also learned the prince usually spent his time on the hill top, picking lavender to help his older brother through stressful times. Even when he was already married, he would come to visit his younger brother almost every day, and he would always receive a new bundle of purple flowers.

From the fond way the people talked about the royal brothers, it was clear they were happy to have them. And from what he had seen days prior to his visit, he knew their words were true.

As word was sent out of the prince’s voyage, the brothers wept endlessly, the older brother promising he would do everything in his power to keep him home.

Intrigued, he had flown to the balcony of the eldest days prior, invisible and quietly disguised under the night sky, observing how he and his spouse were discussing the news.

_“It’s unfair, Logan!” he paced around the balcony, pulling on the golden cords around his waist._

_“I know, dear. But if that is what Aphrodite wants…”_

_“She wants him to be taken away! By some creature! He’s not some prize to be awarded to the best idiot of the Olympics!”_

_“Virgil, please”, he walked over to him, taking him by his hands and bringing them to his lips, his white marble skin even brighter against the warm, dark of his husband’s. “What use is stating what we already know? You can’t stop the gods themselves.”_

_“Can’t I?” his voice hoarse. “I would give my life for him. He’s my baby brother, Logan. He doesn’t deserve this.”_

_“What good would that bring? Not only would that destroy him, but me as well”, he pulled him into a tender embrace, leaving enough time for Virgil to pull away._

_He closed his arms around him, tugging at the soft fabric. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”_

_“I know, my prígkipas. It’s alright. I know how much you love him.”_

_Virgil sobbed quietly. “There must be something we can do?”_

_“Only the gods can tell.”_

_He let go of Logan, looking him firmly in the eye. “Then that is what they shall do.”_

_“What are you planning?”_

_Virgil raced back into his room, frantically packing. “If the gods are the only ones that can tell me what to do, then let them talk.”_

_He grabbed some clothes from a trunk in the corner. “We’re going to the Oracle of Delphi.”_

So, Janus looked as they prepared for the journey to Delphi. But by the time they would return, Janus would be long gone, and so would the prince.

Eventually he found himself hidden in the shadows, observing the prince on the hillside. He knew of his beauty, but he could never imagine himself being in awe of the man before him.

Even though he had clearly cried, there was something about the way he softly picked the stems, how he wrinkled his nose as the pollen made him sneeze, something about how his freckles adorned his bronze skin and his curly brown hair draped around his shoulder, tied with a bright blue ribbon and oh, how they complimented his baby blue eyes.

Realization hit him, like a tidal waving engulfing the rocks off the cliff side, seeping through his body. It was something he knew all too well, but never like this.

He was always a visitor, a spectator to a phenomenon so known, yet so far away. To finally be in the middle of it instead of on the sideline, was inconceivable.

This is what it felt like. To be pierced by Cupid. To lay eyes upon someone, to have your heart say that this one was the one. He could feel his pulse racing, the golden ichor heating up and flowing vigorously. He knew this man was not just perfect in beauty, but in heart and soul as well. 

Oh to have chosen this prince of all men. This was how it felt to fall in love. To have fallen for someone you were not meant to fall for.

Thinking about what he was supposed to do, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He couldn’t imagine taking this sweet young man away to a foreign land, alone and heartbroken. He didn’t want to be the monster that destroyed his life, didn’t want to be the cause of his despair, the reason those soft eyes would be red and filled with sadness instead of stars.

But he couldn't disobey his orders either.

Stricken with desperation, he called upon a friend.

As the leaves around him shook, ruffling the arrows in his quiver, he looked at the hazy form before him, green vibrant eyes staring back at him.

“You called, oh mighty Beast?”

“Remus, I told you not to call me that.”

“And I told you not to invite me over unless I can send some trees into the air.”

“You can do that whenever you like!”

“Uh, tell that to Demeter and Artemis and Zeus and-”

“Okay yes, fine, I get it. Anyway, I need a favor.”

“A favor, you say? What favor could the mighty god of Love possibly want from a mere wind god like myself? Oh, are times truly that desperate?”

“You’re an absolute _bdelyrós_ , you know.”

“I mean, if you want me to be one I can just-”

“No, don’t bother. The incident in Thebes was bad enough.”

“Come on, that was hilarious.”

As much as he wanted to scowl, he found himself smirking instead. “Alright, it was a little funny. But that’s not important”, he waved a hand in front of him.

“I need you to help me with this... prophecy I might be trying to...circumnavigate, so to speak.”

Remus narrowed his eyes, twirling around him. “What prophecy? You know trying to fight the Fates is very dangerous. It could be incredibly gruesome if you try to defy them.”

“I am aware of that”, he sighed.

“Great! Let’s do it then. What do you need?”

Janus gestured towards the prince.

“Oooh, who do we have here?” Remus turned to hover over at the prince, the man unaware of his presence save for a calm riple of his tunic.

“A fine looking human, this one. A prince, from the looks of it. What’s wrong with him? Is he secretly a monster? Is he cursed?”

“You could say that”, he sighed. “I need you to take him away.”

“Take him where? And why should I bother? You have wings, you glorified chicken.”

“I-, I can’t.”

“Why not?” What’s so special about him?” he untied the ribbon in the prince’s hair ever so slightly, and Janus’ eyes couldn’t help but linger on his arms as he pulled it taut again.

“Remus could you not?” he made way to pull him back, invisible to the mortal eye. “I just can’t.”

“No way”, he gasped, taking in how he looked at the man.

The wind god grinned sharply. “You have finally done it.”

“Done what?” Janus hissed.

“You know what I mean. You sport the same face your targets make.”

Janus glared at him. “I have no idea what you mean.”

“Oh my Zeus, you are absolutely besotted!”

“I am _not_ besotted!”

Remus put his hands behind his head, legs crossed as he drifted along the field. “How long have we been friends, Eros?”

Janus winced. Remus rarely called him by his proper name. “A long time”, he folded his arms nonchalantly.

“As your friend, I _know_ you, better than anyone. So”, he poked him in the chest, “I know when you’re in love. Because this, this I’ve only seen on people whose hearts have been pierced by your arrows but never on _you_.”

Janus grunted. “Will you help me or not?” 

“Hhhmmm, I might actually” he smiled evilly.

A ripple settled over the field, blowing away the basket the prince had put his collected flowers in as he manifested before him.

“Remus, no wait-”

“Greetings, young prince”, he interrupted him, “ I am Zephyrus, the West Wind, but you may call me Remus.”

For a mortal, he surprisingly did not scream in fear upon seeing a god appear out of nowhere. Then again, freeze was also a suitable reaction to fear.

“T-the god, Zephyrus?”

“Well how many West Winds named Zephyrus do you know?”

The prince opened and closed his mouth a few times before answering a steady “one”.

“I thought so too”, Remus smirked. “Now then”, he scooped him up with a gust of wind, “I shall be your flight attendant on Air Olympia, to bring you to your new lover.”

“I-, you-, what?” he squealed, floating mid air, “But my family, I didn’t even say goodbye to my parents!”

“Well, I’m sure they will miss you, but orders are orders, sweet cheeks.”

“W-where will you be taking me? The priestess said a winged serpent would take me away? A-are you…”

“Me? Oh, honey no, but I could be! Like many gods I can shapeshift. I can appear in any form I like! A dog, a horse, a hydra with rows and rows of sharp teeth and tongues that will gorge your eyes ou-”

“Please”, the prince pleaded, naively putting his hands before his eyes, or perhaps, in Remus' case, a wise move. “I believe you. I just expected my, uhm, companion to look a bit more…”

“Like a snake?”

Janus bit his lip at the mention of the serpent.

“Monstrous? Demonic? Ravenous? Ridiculously handsome?”

“What, no! I mean, I don’t know! I mean, I admit the thought of a winged serpent taking me away was...frightening, to say the least, but if it were to harm me, the Goddess wouldn’t have sent it. Besides”, he fidgeted with the hem of his tunic, “not _all_ snakes are monsters.”

_Good lords and ladies of the pantheon, he’s adorable._

“Not that I don’t know there are some that are dangerous, I mean I know some definitely are like the serpent Python slain by Apollo, but of course there are others that are most surely good-”

“Kid, I’m messing with you. Relax.”

The royal tried to relax his shoulders, as far as he could do that suspended in the air. “So, the prophecy was wrong then? If you’re not...You know.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say it was wrong. I’m pretty sure it’s quite correct, actually”, he grinned. ”God has his eyes on you.”

“Don’t you mean gods? Plural?”

Remus looked over his shoulder. “No, just the one.”

“Now, ready for your trip, sir…?”

“Patton”, he smiled, and Janus could have drowned in it.

“My name is Patton.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Look into your eyes , and the sky's the limit_
> 
> But not when you're a god

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Mentions of puking and drowning, courtesy of Remus

Patton hadn’t seen a lot of the world growing up. Sure, he had visited numerous kingdoms, met with all sorts of people from all kinds of different upbringings but actually exploring the busy streets? Making small talk with the locals that worked in the fields?

No, never that. The guards were too close on his heels for him to wander off. Besides, Virgil would never let him out of his sight anyway.

_“You should stay closer to the castle walls, Patton.”_

_“I was just walking in the garden, Virgil. King Emile has some beautiful rose bushes and,” he gestured to the pond behind him”,these lilies are such a vibrant pink, like the birds he keeps in the next-”_

_Seeing the worried frown his big brother was sporting, he stopped, setting his brother down next to him at the edge of the pond._

_“I’m sorry. I know you don’t like it when I walk too far away. It’s not what a prince should do”, he chuckled half heartedly._

_“It’s not that”, he shrugged. “Although you are a bit of a soft ball of wool.”_

_Patton softly pushed his arm._

_“You’re my brother, Pat. It’s my job to look out for you”, Virgil sighed. “When you were born, it was the best day of my life.”_

_“You were barely four years old!”_

_“Even so”, he poked him in his side, “I remember the day mother and father let me hold you.”_

_“You were already crying before I touched you, and I was so scared I was going to hurt you, that I would make you cry even more, I didn’t dare move.”_

_He stared at the water, their reflections speckled with dots of green and pink._

“I might as well have cried with you for how much I was shaking. But then you were there, laying in my lap and you just...stopped.”

“All day you had been crying and screaming, I thought that was all you would do”, he laughed. “But then you smiled, like nothing had ever happened. You even tried to grab my hand, such a fragile, sweet thing.”

_“I would do anything to keep you safe like that.”_

_He looked up at his brother, seeing the same smile almost two decades later._

_“So, I keep an eye on you as close as I can because if I ever lose you, if something were to happen to you...I couldn’t live with that.”_

Patton wondered how he was doing now. If he could ever see his brother again and tell him how much he loved him and how proud he was and, and, and-

“You alright, your highness?”

He got pulled from his thoughts, the voice reminding him of his current situation.

“I know you can get teary eyed while flying but you’ve been crying for a bit now.”

Right. Flying. Oh gods he was flying, he was miles above the ocean and he was going to die either from falling so high or drowning or-”

“Hey!” the wind god, _Remus_ , appeared in front of him.

“You good?”

“Yes, of course, no problem at all”, he dared glance at the sea below him and had to close his eyes before he would let the fish know what he had for breakfast.

“And Zeus is a virgin, sure you are”, he snickered.

Patton tried to steady his breathing. He hadn’t been in the air for that long, the sun wasn’t even at its highest point, but that didn’t mean he enjoyed it very much.

Especially not when Remus kept whispering things above him. Well, he thought he was. He was a wind god after all. Either way, it made him uneasy.

“When will we arrive at...wherever it is you’re taking me?” Patton asked.

“Good question, human!” Remus replied.

“What do you mean, good question? You don’t know where we’re going?”

“I have an idea of where we’re going, but even I can’t get there without directions.”

“Directions from who?”

Remus' grin flashed before him. “Wouldn’t you like to know, lover boy?”

_‘Okay’, he thought. ‘I am definitely going to die. Maybe I can pet Cerberos on my way to Hades.’_

Suddenly, he felt the air around him slow down, the water below him getting increasingly closer as he saw his shadow growing larger and larger.

“Are you going to, to drop me in the middle of the ocean!?”

“Now that would be incredibly funny, seeing you go all Icarus, going down towards your do-, OW!”

Remus rubbed the back of his head, or Patton thought he was, too busy praying to every god and goddess he knew for forgiveness for what he had done to be killed like this.

_“Stop scaring him.”_

Patton swore he heard someone say that, someone who was not Remus. He might have asked who else was with them, but all he could say was: “Please, don’t let me drown.”

“Drown you? Kid, the beach is that way if you want to do that.”

“What?” Patton opened his eyes, expecting the salt water to burn them.

Instead he found himself hovering a few feet above land, the grass tickling his feet. Land that was not there a few minutes ago.

Remus gently put him down, which mind you, was very generous of him.

Patton had never seen anything like it, not even the most lush of kingdoms was like this place.

Trees with all sorts of fruits and flowers lined the edge of the island, the greenery brighter than anything back home, the birds singing so sweetly, it was better than any music he had heard before.

As the lowering sun warmed his skin, he wandered along the rows of flower beds, stopping to smell each and every one of them. He thought how nice these would be for Virgil, the pit in his stomach becoming heavier with every passing second. 

Still, he kept exploring.

It was like someone had used gemstones to create it and upon closer inspection, mainly because Patton was enchanted by the butterflies sitting on his nose , he saw small emeralds and rubies sitting like crowns on the wings.

As dazzling as everything around him was, nothing was as imposing as the grand palace he found in the centre of the island.

Now, he was used to living in a grand castle of his own, it was even bigger than the one before him, but it couldn’t match it in the sheer power it radiated.

The white marble columns seemed to be coated in gold with how brightly they reflected the light against the frieze above. The more he looked at it, the more it seemed like the people in it were moving, as if they were welcoming him.

“Who’s the owner?” he turned to ask Remus, but saw no one.  
Strange.

He thought he heard him laugh behind him.

“And he didn’t even say goodbye”, Patton breathed.

Unsure of what else to do, he walked up the steps of the palace, trying to spot anyone who might live there.

Inside he found pillars sporting the same flowers he saw outside, ivy curling around them. Sheer pink curtains flowed in the breeze, a sweet scent filling the air as he strolled around.

“Hello?” he called out.

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw someone but as he moved over to investigate, he found only an empty hallway.

“I don’t mean to intrude”, he yelled again.

“Remus just dropped me off, I think”, he pointed over his shoulder, “but I think he left already.”

He could feel something brush his cheek, briefly and warm and he spun around, heart rate increasing.

“I-, I know someone is here. I don’t want any trouble.”

Still, he got no reply.

Tears started welling up in his eyes, a sob barely repressed in his throat. It was hard enough being who knows how far away from home. It was hard enough knowing he was alone and possibly in danger. But not knowing? The feeling of someone watching you? 

That was way worse.

At least if he knew what he was facing, he would know what to prepare for, what to expect.

What to fear.

_“Please don’t cry.”_

Patton shrieked, unsure of where the voice was coming from.

“Where are you? _Who_ are you?” he turned around in circles, trying to find anyone.

_“Unimportant”_

“No one is unimportant.” He walked around the halls slowly. “I’m guessing you know, who I am?”

_“Astute.”_

“Would you be so kind to tell me your name, then?”

_“You can call me Janus”_

“Janus. That’s a nice name. Can you show me where you are?”

_“I can’t.”_

“Why not? Would I be cursed if I saw you? Or turned to stone?”

The voice chuckled, and if Patton wasn’t so scared he might have found it cute.

_“No, but you wouldn’t like what you saw.”_

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

_“It means you won’t get to see me.”_

“Okay, then. Why am I here? What are you going to do to me?”

_“If you’re afraid of getting hurt, I can assure you no one can harm you here.”_

“It’s not like I’ve seen anyone here,” he muttered.

The voice remained silent for a few minutes.

_“I’m sorry.”_

Patton didn’t expect to hear an apology, let alone one that sounded so sad.

“Sorry for what?”

_“For bringing you here. I know it’s not what you expected but in time I will explain.”_

_How will I explain it, though._

“Well, if the gods want it, who am I to disobey?”

_“You’re not the one disobeying.”_

“A-are you?”

_“That is for me to know and for you to wonder about. I hope you will enjoy your stay.”_

“No wait, please!” Patton ran into a nearby room, hoping to find his host, yet he found nothing but an empty bed.

“Don’t go.”

_“You don’t even know me. For all you know I am a monster waiting to kill you.”_

He gulped, the thought having crossed his mind a few times.

“Then why haven’t you?”

His voice echoed through the room.

“You could have killed me already. I’m not exactly hero material, you know. I don’t fight monsters, but I don’t think you are one.”

_“How are you so sure?”_

“You were the one Remus was talking to, right?”

_“Perhapsss.”_

The way he hissed sent shivers down his spine. Nevertheless, his confidence didn’t waver.

“Then why go through all the trouble of getting me here? Remus could have killed me simply by dropping me. You could have attacked me outside before I even reached the stairs.”

Janus laughed, the sound high and so smooth, Patton couldn’t imagine a monster laughing like that.

_“For someone who doesn’t call themselves a hero, you’re awfully brave.”_

He smiled. “I don’t think I’m brave. I just don’t think you’re all that bad.”

_“Who knows?”_

“Well, I would like to know.

_“Are you sure you want to?”_

“What, are you scared I will find out who you really are?”

_Yes. More than anything._

In all fairness, Janus didn’t know what he was doing. Keeping Patton here, keeping him hidden from his mother, trying to escape the Fates… All a desperate attempt at what? Love?

Unrequited love is what this was.

But he couldn’t help but hope that maybe…

Maybe. 

Such a stupid word, maybe. Could mean yes, could mean no, could mean too many things and not enough things at once.

Right now, he had essentially kidnapped Patton. Not that he would stop him from leaving, but he had just arrived. And he didn’t even try to run away. 

It made Janus head spin even more.

_“We’ll see about that.”_

“So, what now?”

_“You must be tired. Why don’t you go and freshen up, rest a bit.”_

By any logic, Patton should have tried to explore his new...home more and relaxing into trusting the mysterious owner like this wasn’t a smart move. However, he was tired, whether it was from flying or from so many emotions, he didn’t care.

And Janus didn’t sound like he would treat him badly, either.

“I-, I would like that. Can I-”

_“You can go anywhere here you like. Ask and it’s yours.”_

“You mean, I can ask for anything?”

_“Anything.”_

“So... can I get a puppy?”

_“Don’t push it.”_

Patton giggled, bright, genuine and sweetly. It was all Janus wanted to hear for the rest of eternity.

Was this a mistake? Was this destined to end in torture? Why, why, why did he do this? He wanted to have him close, yes, but was near and unreachable better than far away?

“Can I ask for something else, then?”

_“If you’re going to ask for a kitten I might take back what I said.”_

“No, nothing like that!” he chuckled, “But if you won’t show me who you are, would you at least stay with me, Janus?”

_“I think I can do that, Patton.”_

He smiled, relaxing his shoulders as he did so.

“But a kitten would also be nice.”

_“You’re an abomination.”_

“And you’re a creepy cookie but still a cookie.”

_“Are you calling me a snack, your highness?”_

Patton’s cheeks turned a lush pink and he quickly crossed his arms defensively.

“I am not! I would never! You-, how dare you?”

_“You’re adorable.”_

Lush pink turned to bright red as Patton put his hair behind his ears. It’s not that he never got compliments, it just felt...different coming from Janus.

_Get your act together!_

“You think I’m adorable?”

_“I-, uhm.”_

Patton heard the ruffling of fabric and turned around to see different kinds of tunics laid out on the bed. Even if he wasn’t in awe of how those beautiful pieces of clothing appeared, he was grateful for the distraction.

_“You should get freshened up. I’ll see you at dinner in a bit.”_

And with that, Patton felt Janus’ presence leave the room.

He walked over to the bed and admired the elegant clothing left behind for him, colours of fabric he had never seen before. He picked out a bright blue chiton, his favourite colour, and a yellow chlamys.

Whoever Janus really was, Patton didn’t think he was a monster.

Not to him, at least.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, but here's another chapter for the Eros and Psyche au!
> 
> TW: mentions of killing, kidnapping, fighting. Let me know if I should add anything!

“Virgil, you need to take a break.”

Logan watched his husband pace around the stone steps, sure to be leaving burn marks across it if he kept going like that.

“I can’t. Not until I have answers.”

Virgil crossed his arms, biting his nails as he glanced back at Logan.

They had arrived at the oracle three days ago, the haste with which they had travelled blessed by Hermes, yet it seemed Apollo didn’t deem them worthy of receiving the same grace, for the Oracle had not spoken since their arrival.

They had brought gold, jewels, incense, vats of olive oil, the richest dye and still, the oracle remained silent. Sure, the priestess may not have seemed interested in it, but her fellow companions did not share her hesitancy in accepting the offerings.

Which made the duo even more agitated. 

“You can’t force an answer out of her by walking aimlessly and chewing off your nails”, Logan stared at him from underneath the shadows of an olive tree. “Take a break dear.”

“We’ve been doing nothing for days now!” Virgil threw his hands up in the air. “We left Patton behind, all alone. What if something has happened? What if someone tried to murder him up in the mountains? You know how he leaves his guards behind all the time.”

He stopped while continuing his rant. “Or worse, what if the monster has already taken him? What if he’s held hostage? What if he’s held for _dinner?_ I shouldn’t have left him, but if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have gotten any answers from the Oracle-“

“Virgil.”

“Not that she’s giving us any answers now, for that matter. Cause again, we’ve been stuck here for three days, and _still-_ “

Virgil gasped as a splash of cold water met with his face. He looked around to see Logan standing next to him, holding a hydria.

“You need to _cool down a bit_ ”, he said.

“Did you… did you just... _make a pun?”_

“Drastic times ask for drastic measures”, he put down the hydria. “But if anyone asks, I will deny everything.”

“Now, will you take a deep breath? For me?”

Virgil reluctantly complied, letting the anxiety roll from his shoulders like the droplets of waters from his hair, falling along his purple garments.

“That’s better” Logan brushed the hairs from his face. “Now, will you take a break? Eat something, drink some water instead of collecting it in your hair.”

“You’re the one who threw it in my face” Virgil teasingly pushed him away.

“Don’t dodge the question, it won’t work with me”, Logan chuckled.

“Yeah, yeah” Virgil sighed. “I know, I should probably do as you say.”

He stared at the complex of the oracle behind them. Still, no signs of there being any chance of getting inside with a prophecy of some sorts. He gave up on looking at the cave entrance, instead focussing on the structure of the mountainside and the flowers growing along it. Flowers Patton would have loved to pick.

He felt his stomach turn into a knot once more, worry being the only thing filling his thoughts.

He knelt down near the flowers, gently prodding them. When he got Patton back, they were going to pick flowers every day, he swore to himself. Gods and prophecies be damned.

While his thoughts of determination and anxiety raged a battle in his head, he noticed a crevice near the far left of the cave, one he hadn’t noticed before.  
He moved closer, hand trailing the dark stone surface. 

“Hey Logan?”

Logan hummed, having decided to take out some of their provisions to eat. “Yes, dearest?”

“There’s a staircase around the back of the cave over here.”

“Yes, and?” he walked over, holding some bread in his hands to share.

“Maybe it leads inside the cave from the other side.”

“Virgil, no, please.”

“What?” he shrugged his shoulders innocently. 

“You’re planning it, I know that look.”

“What look?” he batted his eyelashes at him.

He sighed, putting the bread back in the cloth they brought it in. “You’re going to investigate.”

“I am going to investigate” Virgil grinned.

“That’s not very princely of you!” Logan called after him as he wormed his way alongside the rock wall.

“Neither is letting your husband go on investigations alone, so get your pretty ass over here!”

“Will you _not_ shout that in public! This is a sacred place!”

“Sacred like my ass!”

Logan trailed after him, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I love him, I love him, I love him, gods give me strength and patienc-“

Virgil reappeared before him, grabbing his arm and pulling him forwards with a yelp.

As the two men rounded the cave, Virgil on one hand hoping to find another entrance, Logan on the other hoping to find nothing of the sorts, they heard voices coming from the back.

 _“Babes, you definitely should go to Thebes, like, this time of year, I high key predict you’re going to have fun there.”_

“Did you hear that?” Virgil whispered. “Must be the Oracle.”

“Or, just someone who would love to not have us eavesdrop like this.”

 _“Oh, does the great and powerful god of Prophecies say so?”_

_“Girl, are you doubting me?”_

Virgil cast a smirk Logan’s way before his husband crept closer.

Logan tried to catch a glimpse of the supposed oracle, carefully edging forward without startling them. As he managed to hide behind a tree, he grabbed onto the bark, before releasing it as a shriek pierced through the air.

“Get your hands off of me!” a voice called.

The tree in front of him disappeared in a shroud of leaves and petals, revealing a beautiful young maiden in its place. 

“Don’t you know that’s rude?” she said.

 _“Ma Dí”,_ Logan exclaimed. _“A dryad.”_

“That’s Iitia for you” the presumably oracle spoke again. “Itia, you shouldn't do that everytime, girl. Look at him, he didn’t know better.”

“He was sneaking up on me and you know it! Wouldn’t be the first time that has happened.”

“I can assure you, I had no such intentions. For what it’s worth, I apologize, my lady.” Logan politely bowed, putting a hand to his heart.

“Okay”, she mumbled, “that however, is a first, so…I’ll let it slide. Only because your friend is cute.”

“I beg your pardon” Virgil stared at her.

“She’s right, you know” Logan smiled. “You are indeed cute.”

“Logan. Shut up”, he blushed.

“So, are you, taken?” Itia leaned forward towards him.

“Uh, yeah, taken for granted” Virgil back up against the rock wall. “I mean” he corrected himself as Logan glared at him. “Yes, I am taken. I am happily married to my husband” he pointed at Logan. “Sorry, miss.”

“Hmm. Alright then” she sighed, vanishing before their eyes and leaving nothing but twigs and leaves behind her.

“Aww come on” the remaining person whimpered. “I was _this _close to having her spread the rumour king Midas has donkey ears!”__

__“King Midas has donkey ears?” Logan looked perplex._ _

__“Yeah yeah, whatever” they waved aside the statement. “What do you want?”  
Virgil stepped forward, clearing his throat: “Great and Wise Pythia, Oracle of Delphi, may we please receive your gift of divination to aid us on our quest to save my brother from great peril?”_ _

__The silence after Virgil spoke was heavy, and, quite frankly, awkward._ _

__“Did I not say that right?” he whispered back at Logan._ _

__“As far as I know you did that perfectly.”_ _

__Suddenly, the oracle clutched their stomach, bending over and leaning on a nearby rock._ _

__“Are they, you know? Is this the thing? Is this supposed to happen?” Virgil asked worriedly._ _

__Then, the oracle started to shake, tremble before their eyes, breathing heavily until eventually…_ _

__They chuckled, giggles evolving into a boisterous laughter, tears forming in their eyes._ _

“Y-you, you thought I? T-the _Oracle?”_ they wheezed. _“D-do I look like?”_

The two men stared at each other, confused. “I mean, we supposed you were. This is Delphi, you were giving a prediction to the dryad, and usually they don’t mingle with regular mortals like us. Sorry if we mistook you for one"

The not-Oracle chuckled, wiping away a tear. “I never said I _was_ a regular mortal, babes.”

“Then, what are you?”

“I have many names” they leaned back against the rock. “If you’re looking for the Oracle, she’s down by the river, taking a day of ‘self-care’. Don’t tell the sweetheart I told you that, though.”

“You personally know the _Oracle?”_ Virgil drawled. “Like, the actual Oracle, you know, prophecies? Divination? 

“Uh, yeah?” they said. “I sure hope so? I don’t give anyone the gift of prophecies just like that, you know? Except that one gal like, a few centuries back, but hey, I was distracted by this _really_ handsome lad, and giiirl, he was _fiiiiine.”_

“Wait wait wait, give the gift of prophecies…Oh gods.”

“Yes, babes?” they smiled a flashy grin.

“Are, are you…” Logan muttered dumbfoundedly.

The one and only. Well, not really, you know, different versions, different myths, yadda yadda.” They waved a hand around, a shimmering golden aura appearing around them.

"But you can call me Remy for now. Kinda like that. Has a nice ring to it.”

“Oh gods, literal god, oh my gods, I-“ Logan stammered. “You had to go out and investigate. Now we’re talking to a god, nay, not just any god, the Apollo, god of prophecies, archery, music, art, we’re basking in the presence of _Apollo-“_

“Babes, I told you to just call me Remy, no need to be so formal.”

“And he’s calling us _babes-_ ,wait should I address you with him? Or they? Your lordship, uhm, ma’am, sir, your grace?” Virgil said, holding Logan who was still muttering to himself.

“If you so much as mispronounce my name I will turn you to stone” they lowered his voice, towering over the two men.

“Just kidding!” they chuckled. “You should have seen your faces, hilarious babes, _hilarious."_

They sighed wholeheartedly. “But really, you can call me anything, I don’t actually care as long as you like, don’t insult me or anything. I do have a reputation.”

“Yes sir”, Virgil nodded.

“So”, Remy waved their hand, summoning chairs for them all to sit in, “What was that about your brother?”

“Yes” Virgil guided Logan to a chair alongside him. “Uhm, actually, it’s about a prophecy you gave my parents a while back? About him? Uh, my name’s Virgil, and this is Logan. I, uh, my brother is Patton? Prince Patton, if that helps? Curly hair, blue eyes, sweetheart and really innocent and doesn’t deserve to be taken away by a monster?"

Apollo, _Remy,_ stared at him, long hair curling around his finger.

“Did you just indirectly slander his divine words?” Logan looked up at his husband. “Do you want to get us killed or worse?”

“I’m just asking!” he shushed him. 

“I remember him” Remy interjected. “Cute kid, easy prophecy. What about it?”

“Well, you mentioned, I mean, the prophecy mentioned he’d be taken away by a winged serpent. I just, I wanted to know”, he clenched his fists. “Can I stop it?”

“You want to defy my revelations?” Remy leaned forward. “Are you saying, I was wrong?”

“What, no!” Logan held a hand on Virgil’s. “He would never imply that, your grace, uh Lord Ap-, Remy.”

“He was just wondering if…Uhm, we could, perhaps, do something about it?"

“Do something about it.”

The mortals shot each other worried glances, praying that whatever punishment the deity had in mind wouldn’t be too bad.

"Well then why didn’t you just say so?” Remy put his hands behind his head.

“So, you can help us? Can you change the prophecy?” Virgil asked hopefully.

“Oh, no, I can’t.”

“But you said-“

“I said you should have started with that, not that I could do anything about it.”

He snapped his fingers, a goblet appearing in his hand. “I don’t write the prophecies, babes, I just make sure you humans can receive them. When it’s written, I can’t change them. No one can.”

“So, that means” Virgil dipped his head, heart sinking along with it. “I won’t ever see him again…”

“I never said _that._ ”

“But-“

“Mortals” he sighed, taking a sip from his drink. “You all can only see what’s right ahead of you. Don’t you know that nothing is just plain to see? Take Itia for instance, you were sure she was just a regular tree, but she was a dryad. Just because you think it is one thing, doesn’t mean it can’t be something else.”

"Well, that also has to do with magic and the supernatural” Logan replied, “but I understand what you’re saying. Does this mean we can do something about Patton getting abducted?”

“Oh he’s already taken, girl.”

“Sorry, what was that?” Virgil gawked at him.

“He’s already taken, did I not tell you that before?”

"He’s-“ Virgil clutched his tunic, one hand running through his hair. “He’s already-, I’m going to lose my mind, I-“

“Virgil, calm down, they didn’t say he was harmed in any way, right?” Logan looked back at the god.

“You’re learning” they hummed, liquid sloshing around in the goblet. 

“So, he’s not…”

“If you want to know if he’s dead, you should ask either Thanatos or Hades, but as far as I know, he was doing fine last time I saw him. A little spooked, but not harmed.”

“You, you saw him?” Logan asked surprised.

Virgil perked up at the question. “Where? Is he okay? Can I see him? Can I take him back home?”

“Don’t know, probably, I don’t think so, and probably not.”

“What?”

“Listen, I like you two, you’re adorable and your brother is a gay up cutie, definitely blessed by Ro-, I mean, Aphrodite, but…I don’t really _know_ where he is. I mean I _know_ know, but I don’t _know_ , you know?”

“No, you’re not making any sense” Virgil groaned. “What is that supposed to mean.”

“Okay, I can see you really care for the kid, so I’ll tell you as much as I can.”

They downed the last bit of their drink. “I can’t tell you exactly where they are, cause the place where he is, is always changing location. Even I can’t get there without directions, and babes, I drive the sun chariot. I’ve been _everywhere._ ”

“Second thing I can tell you, is that I’m fairly sure he’s alright. The ‘winged serpent’ you’re so afraid of hurting him, ain’t that bad, depending on who you ask cause let me tell you, he is an ass sometimes.”

Virgil’s eyes grew wide as he explained further.

“Relax, he won’t hurt him, I’m 99% sure about that. As for whether or not you can see him, that ties back into the fact I can’t even go there myself, let alone bring you two.”

__Virgil took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. “So you can’t take us, but he’s relatively safe for now?”_ _

__“Correct. Ish. Probably.”_ _

__“So I’ll never see him again. I can’t rescue my brother.”_ _

__“He never said that” Logan assured him. “Just that he couldn’t bring us. Perhaps there are other means at our disposal?”_ _

__Remy grinned at him. “You do know how to pick your men, Virgil. Might have stolen him from you if I would have known that earlier.”_ _

__Logan blushed, unsure what to think of that. “So, there is a way?”_ _

__“There’s always a way”, Remy loosened a ribbon from his arm. “If you care to look right.”_ _

__“Whatever options we have, I’ll take them. Whatever challenge you have for me, I’ll do it.”_ _

__“You’re not doing them alone, Virgil” Logan soothed. “Patton is as much my brother as he is yours. Wherever you go, I go.”_ _

__Virgil turned to face his husband, conviction and fondness in his eyes. “You know you don’t have to. If we’re going to…face a monster, I won’t blame you for not coming with me.”_ _

__“But I would. I married you not for your wealth or your status, I married you for your courage, your bravery, your wit, your brilliant mind, your love for those you care about.”_ _

__Logan laced their fingers together. “You’re stuck with me, like it or not.”__

____

“Aww babes that’s so sweet, you’re so cute! Maybe thank Eros for falling in love” he simpered.

__

__“But anyway, as for what your options are.”_ _

__

__“Yes??”_ _

__

__“I have no idea.”_ _

__

__“….Why are you like this” Logan whined._ _

__

__“I mean, I could perhaps find this friend and let him send a message across if you want? Other than that I can’t help you kids.”_ _

__

__“A message if perfect!” Virgil shot up. “I mean, there are better things, but a message would be great. At least I can talk to him, in some way.”_ _

__

__“Alright, I can do that for you”, they said, tying the ribbon to their hair._ _

__

__Logan eyed them warily. “What’s the catch?”_ _

__

“Whaaat? Catch? _Me?_ I have no idea what you’re saying!” they put a hand to their chest. “I’m hurt you would say that, babes.”

__

There’s always a catch when it comes to gods. What punishment awaits us?”

__

“No punishment, I swear” Remy held out his fingers crossed over his heart.

__

__“No strings attached?” Virgil narrowed his eyes. “That seems likely. What are you not telling us?”_ _

__

__“Okay, okay, you got me, geez, no sense of drama.”_ _

__

__Remy got up, chair disappearing underneath him. “Well,” he stretched his back, “you’re gonna have to talk to this friend yourself.”  
“I mean I will tell him you two want to have a word with him, of course, but you’ll have to convince him yourself.”_ _

__

__“Why does he need to talk to us if you’re already telling him about our intentions?”_ _

__

__“Becaaauuuuse, _dramaaaa_ . But also because he’s friends with your winged serpent and he won’t just listen to me because for some reason he’s still mad at me for something that happened 420 years ago!” he shouted._ _

__

__“And maybe he will also be more lenient to be your messenger if he talks to you himself. He likes messing with humans so he’ll be impressed if you have the guts to talk to him in person. Not saying you don’t need to convince him, but it’s a start.”_ _

__

__“Totally not foreboding”, Virgil sighed. “And how do we do that?”_ _

__

__“Oh, that’s simple.”_ _

__

__Remy summoned a golden chariot over the edge of the mountain before stepping off the ledge._ _

__

__“You’ll have to fight the West Wind.”_ _

__


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A somewhat more fluffy chapter for y'all <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mentions of kidnapping (again, this is based off of the Eros and Psyche myth so you know what to expect) kissing, self-deprecation
> 
> Let me know if I should add anything and I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Come say hi on tumblr @crazydemigod666 !

Being a god isn’t easy. Oh, yeah, sure, you can do all kinds of wonders, conjure up a lot at will, the whole works. You get to see things mortals couldn’t even dare to dream of. Get to taste and do things only possible in the imaginative mind of a human.

But it is _tiring._

Janus let out a deep sigh as he draped himself over his bed, wings laid out across it. He stared at the hallway, room obscured to anyone but him. Patton had been there for a bit now, days stretching into weeks. 

They hadn’t said much in the beginning. Janus often didn’t know what to say when he saw Patton enjoying his food or strolling along in the garden. After a while, he could manage sharing more than just dinner together, enjoying his company.

Even though Patton hadn’t actually met him, face to face, he still remained cheery, polite and chivalrous, as was befitting of the prince. As time passed by, they both had grown accustomed to each other, finding comfort in their routines of shared space and time.

However, Janus noticed a sadness creeping into Patton’s eyes, staring more and more at the wide stretch of sea every morning and evening. Janus loved having Patton with him, more than anything, yet, he felt the guilt rise every time he saw his prince’s blue eyes blink away a stray tear.

Which brought him to offer Patton something new to take his mind off of other things.

_‘A dance?’ he asked excitedly during breakfast._

_‘Uhm, yes, if you want to.’_

_Patton dropped the spoon in his hand, moving toward the opposite end of the table. Even though he couldn’t see Janus, he knew he sat there with him every day now._

_‘With you?’_

_Janus’ feather bristled as Patton unknowingly brushed his hands against them._

_‘I mean, if that is what you want?’_

_‘I’d love that!’ he clapped his hands in excitement. ‘I haven’t danced in ages!’_

So, after breakfast, a dance was prepared. His promised event was approaching quicker than he thought, even though it had only been a few hours since he suggested it.

But Janus could have easily been flying around for days, or so it felt.

The thing with being a god is, you have to be everywhere. In the span of those few hours, Janus had been in Crete, he’d been in Troy (or what was left of it), he’d been in Sparta (as fun as that was) he’d been in Thebes, in Milete, in Megara….

He stretched out his wings, pearly white speckled with gold in the lowering sun from outside the room. He pulled up a pillow and made a swift motion with his hand, a goblet of wine filling rapidly.

He wasn’t _actually_ there, you know. He was there _in essence._

Occasionally, he would split himself up into pieces, whenever multiple occasions called for it at the same time. Usually, he didn’t have to. Gods and goddesses rarely did so because, even when they were busy somewhere else, the world still functioned when they weren’t around in person.

Today he had several places to be, all equally important in the eyes of the Olympians that ruled this section of the world. Yet, there was only one place he truly wanted to be.

He took a sip from his wine, the finest Dionysos could provide.

Okay, not the finest. _That_ kind of wine was…not safe to drink unless you had the next century off. But the second finest would do.

Janus took a long sip, letting the liquid fill his tired limbs.

Stretching yourself thin, not fun. Really. But it could be worse, he supposed, as he let a lazy hand fall over his eyes.

It could be a time from before he was around, when love was reckless, far stretched, futile, exhilarating, wild and unpredictable. Well, even more so than it was now.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------

_‘‘Come now, Eros. Don’t be scared.’_

_‘He looked around the grand palace, marbles columns stretching so high into the sky they disappeared into the clouds. Clouds that were turning from rose gold into ashen grey the closer he got to the top of the stairs._

_‘‘Mother, do I have to?’ he asked worriedly._

_‘He’d been around for only a few weeks, and so far, none of the gods had paid more attention to him except for when he was born. After those festivities, they had left him to his devices rather quickly. Right now however, they decided they wanted to meet him. In person. At Mt. Olympos. Home of the gods and goddesses of old._

_‘The goddess of love halted before the entrance, gently taking him by the shoulders and ruffling his hair._

_‘‘Eros, do you know who you are?’_

_‘He looked down at his feet, golden cords dangling around his knees. ‘I am your son?’_

_‘She smiled, placing a kiss on his head. ‘You are, my dear. And do you know what that means?’_

_‘‘That I have good genes?’ he joked._

_‘Aphrodite chuckled, her golden curls almost falling to the floor. ‘You do, yes. But it also means you’re a god. And that means, you need to take your place, meet your family, present yourself.’_

_‘‘Present myself’ he murmured._

_‘‘Like you did in a parade of foam and flowers?’_

_‘‘Hey, those were very popular back then’ she booped him on his nose. ‘And how dare you disrespect your elders like that.’_

_‘‘No disrespect, Mother’, Janus managed to smile. ‘I just, I don’t know what they’ll think of me. I haven’t been on Earth for so long, how can I possibly know what to do or be?’_

_‘‘Sweetheart’, Aphrodite guided him away from the steps, dark clouds passing overhead. ‘Look at you, you’ve been around for what, almost a month or two? Yet you inherited some fine looks from your parents, though, I’d like to take most credit for that.’_

_‘I’ll be sure to let Father know’ Janus rolled his eyes teasingly._

_‘You’re such a handsome young man already, the epitome of godly beauty and grace. You’re cunning, you’re smart, and, granted a pesky little child sometimes-‘_

_‘That was one time-‘_

_‘Yet, for someone as young as you, I think you’ll make a brilliant god, no matter what your domain will be. I’ll be proud of you, regardless.’_

_Eros sucked in a breath, looking his mother sternly in the eye as he walked into the hall of the gods._

_His wings draped across the floor behind him, reminding him of the only part of him different from the rest of the pantheon as his feathers trembled lightly._

_Eros’, Zeus’ voice boomed loudly over the murmurs that filled the room moments beforehand. ‘Do you know why you are here?’_

_He swallowed thickly, curious eyes trained on him expectantly. ‘To claim my place amongst the gods.’_

_‘And what would that place entail?’_

_‘I-, I do not know. Not for sure, at least. I suppose…’_

_He glanced at his mother, taking her place on the only vacant throne left, next to her husband’s._

_‘Something in the area of love?’_

_‘Taking after his mother’ Athena stated plainly. ‘Interesting.’_

_And what did you have in mind, then?’ Zeus’ blue eyes stared him down, and he could feel the electricity buzzing around the palace._

_He closed his eyes, thinking about what his purpose could be. What his role would be along the gods the mortals would worship. There was so much to reign over, so many attributes he could choose. Yet they meant nothing if it wasn’t clear and of use to the world. To mortals. To humans. Humans he had only briefly seen and interacted with. Humans who were wild and lonely and suffering. Humans in need of someone, someone to care for._  
_Someone to love and be loved by._

_I think, I would like to make people fall in love. Be in love, and be loved by someone else.’_

_‘Oh?’ the gods shifted in their places._

_‘I can feel them’ he explained as the pantheon watched him move about. ‘I can feel their hearts. The way they long for another, the emotions they feel…The emptiness… I want to, to help them, if I can.’_

_‘Hmm’ Zeus furrowed his eyebrows. ‘Very well, that could be useful.’_

_‘Useful?’ Eros wondered aloud._

_‘If we can tweak the lives of mortals like this, it would be in our favour.’_

_‘What do you mean, favour?’ Eros walked closer._

_‘Think about it’ Zeus looked around the room. ‘It would be much easier to set things in motion like this, build society more favourable to our needs.’_

_‘But that’s a society build on lies!’ he yelled, receiving a scowl from the king of the gods._

_‘Mind your manners, boy. It does not do well for a god to behave like a beast.’_

_‘Me? A beast!?’ he clenched his fists. ‘I just told you I want to help people, and you immediately want to, to use me as a pawn? Use them as a pawn? There’s nothing but lies and deceptions in there!’_

_‘Eros, darling-‘ Aphrodite tried to diffuse the rising tension._

_‘Young man, you do not make the law here’, Zeus loomed over him._

_‘What kind of law do you preach if it is faulty like that?’ he spat._

_‘Eros’ Zeus spoke coldly, clouds turning black above them, and Eros could feel his skin burning as he wrapped his arms around himself._

_‘I don’t appreciate snakes spitting venom in my house.’_

_Eros felt his skin tear up, stretching and groaning as his left side was set on fire. He could see the golden ichor scorching his limbs._

_‘Zeus, please, stop!’ Aphrodite clung to his arm._

_‘Your son walks in here, thinking he can defy me? The King?’ he lashed out._

_He was down to one knee, wings wrapping around him instinctively as he saw the gold peek through his skin, glittering scales making their way up his arm towards his face._

 _‘Is this what your son wants to be?!’ he yelled at her, and Eros could see tears streaming from her face._  
_He hissed, feeling the pain subside as his transformation reached its final stage, colouring his eyes the same golden colour as the blood pumping through his veins._

_‘A beast among gods?!’ ___

____

_**‘Is that, what you want?’** he growled, voice thick and reverberating though both the room and their heads._

____

_**‘You want a monster? A beast?’** he pushed himself upwards, wings towering behind him and casting a shadow across the floor, illuminated by the lightning behind him._

____

_The gods gasped, seeing the new god staring them all in the eyes with malice._

____

_His fists trembled, left hand gleaming in the dark as a bow manifested in it. On his back, a quiver placed itself between his wings, arrows glowing in the dark._

____

‘ _**You want people to fall in love, regardless of rules or intent?’** Eros seethed. _

____

_He trashed his wings around, wind gushing around the pantheon, clouds circling above him, abandoning Zeus’ command over them as he roared._

____

_**‘You want lies?! You want deception!? You want fear?!’** _

__******** _ _

_Thunder filled the room, boosting his anger._

__******** _ _

_**‘You want to know who I am?’** ___

__****____ ** ** _ _

_He stepped towards the exit, leaving the gods cowering behind him. He cast a glance over his left shoulder, highlighting his new snake like appearance. ___

_**‘I am Eros. Son of the Goddess of Love and the God of War.’** ___

__****_______ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_He spread his wings, ready to dive from the mountain and let his name be known to the world: ___

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_**‘I am the Beast among gods.’** _

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus opened his eyes, hand trailing the scales on his face, an ever fervent reminder of the cruelty of gods.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He took another sip from his drink, the cool evening breeze dancing through his curtains. 

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

The centuries that followed after, he had made quite the reputation for himself. He was feared, yet praised by both immortals and mortals alike. Occasionally, he had to obey orders, such was the hierarchy laid out. But mostly, he was left alone, to do his duties as best as he could.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Yet here he was, drunk with something other than wine, sulking in his bedroom with a mortal prince next door he held captive against his will.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I’m not keeping him captive, I’m just…I’m…” he sighed again.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘What am I even doing?’_

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He groaned, setting the wine down on his bedside table. “I promised him a dance of all things. He’s been here for not even a month, what was I thinking?”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Truth was, he wasn’t thinking when it came to Patton, that was the whole problem. If he had thought this through, he wouldn’t have brought him here. If he had thought this trough, he would have realized that there was no way Patton could love him the way he did.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘Appearance isn’t everything! We know this!’_ his brain yelled at him.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus put a wing over himself, preening it to keep himself occupied.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

As the god of love, he knew that just because of how someone looked, that didn’t mean they couldn’t be loved. Yet, there were so many other thoughts that made him doubt.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Humans were not gods. Did they ever fall in love? Of course they did. There are demigods enough to prove that. Yet, he wasn’t like the other gods.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Gods appear as attractive as possible, flashy and impressive. They show their strength, their strong jawlines and muscles. They woo with gifts and bravura.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

They don’t do it with wings and the face of a snake, and to his knowledge, humans don’t tend to like those things.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Then there was the whole ‘feared by gods and man alike’ part. 

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He plucked out a loose feather, placing it on the growing pile next to him. “What am I even supposed to say? Hello Patton, I’m Eros, god of Love, I have kidnapped you and hidden you from the world because I am madly in love with you, want to get married?”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He hissed, having mistaken a loose feather for a proper one as he rubbed his wing. “No, I haven’t…Okay, yes, I have, but, nowhere did it say I wasn’t allowed to bring him here. I was supposed to take him away, that was all, it did not say where…exactly, so, I’m not disobeying the rules, right? I’m not doing anything wrong.”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘Then why do you feel so bad?’_

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus twirled a feather in his fingers, the light reflecting off of his scaled hand. “Because…he’s unhappy.”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“He’s unhappy” he breathed, “because of me…”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Maybe” he gathered the feathers and moved on to the next wing, “Maybe he shouldn’t be here, with me.”

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“But he just got here” he conjured a brush. “I don’t…I don’t want him to go. Even if he doesn’t love me, he’s my f-“

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘Is he? Is he really?’_

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus sighed deeply, fiddling with the brush in his hands. He closed his eyes, focusing his mind upon the only other beating heart at the island.  
He sifted through all the colours radiating from it, emotions that were swirling around in Patton’s heart.

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Yellow. Curious, intrigued, wondering._

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Light purple. Excited, eager, nervous._

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Violet. Happy, pleased, content._

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_True blue. Calm, at ease, relaxed._

__****_________ _ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Janus smiled lightly as he moved on._

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Yellow green. Pondering. Worried._

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Blue grey. Sad. Despondent. Gloomy._

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He sighed, frown replacing his smile quicker than he had hoped. It wasn’t much, no bigger than a little speck of grey, but it was enough to make him regret his choice even more.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He stared at the colours, dulled by the grey even when they were all so vibrant, the greens, the blues, the yellows, the pink-

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

‘Pink?’

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Obscured behind the purples and blues, he saw a tiny dot, flickering by.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_Pink. Amused. Playful. Flirty._

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘Flirty?’_

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus opened his eyes, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “But that means, he can’t…”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

For the first time since he laid eyes on Patton, there was a flicker of hope burning in his chest. 

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus moved towards the window, wings already working for him as he leapt to prepare for the night. 

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He didn’t have to go far, the island only being so big and his destination close by. He landed in the centre of the garden, the setting sun casting a warm, orange glow over the island as the lights around them slowly came to life.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Fireflies started darting around the different rose bushes, making them glitter ever more like diamonds.  
His home never needed any grooming, perfecting itself to even beyond human standards of beauty. Even with this reassurance, he wanted everything to be better than perfect, it needed to be _outstanding._

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He moved around, wings fluttering as he draped garlands from tree to tree, placing lights as bright as the stars around the pathways. He made pedestals appear, carrying all kinds of plants along with fountains that would add that little bit of magic he needed.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

But none of it was as beautiful and enticing as the prince making his way towards him.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He had traded his light blue chiton for a more royal garment flowing down his back to his ankles, a dark blue gradient ending in a golden trim, wreaths and flowers stitched across. His curls had been tied up with a ribbon, adorned with flowers ranging in size and colour, complimenting his outfit. His short sleeves were held up by golden bracelets up his arms, etched with even more scenes of flora.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He looked like a god amongst humans, lighting up the way for everyone to see as he arrived before Janus.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Well” he called out softly, feeling Janus’ presence next to him, “how do I look?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Absolutely stunning” he breathed, and he could feel a blush creep up his cheeks.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I’d like to say the same about you” Patton giggled, a stray curl being tucked back behind his ear. “But you know, I can’t actually, see you.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Ah. Yes”, Janus rubbed his arms.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“So, will I? Get to see you?” he asked nervously.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“That curious about how I look?” Janus chuckled.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton put his hands to his hips. “Well, it’s been almost a month now and I still haven’t seen you. You can’t blame me for being a little curious.”  
“You got me there, Patton.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I always have you” he smiled, “you’re the only one here to catch!”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus ignored his growing blush. “You calling me a catch? So bold all of a sudden.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton crossed his arms, not bothered anymore to hide his red cheeks. “You can’t just say things like that and expect me not to pout.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Aww, but” Janus landed in front of him, and Patton could feel a warmth spreading through his body as fingers cupped his face,” you’re cute when you’re pouting.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I-“, Patton stammered. “Uhm, so, dance, right? A dance? I need a partner for that, you know.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I suppose you do” Janus’s wings reached out for Patton as he walked around the garden. “And you want…me to…dance with you…”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Well of course I do, you dummy”, he smiled as he looked at the garlands. “But, only if you want to. You don’t have to dance with…me.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“No, I want to!” he replied a bit too quickly. “I just-“

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus steadied himself, calming himself down with a few deep breaths. “I do want to dance with you, I swear. I just…don’t want you to see me.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

_‘For who I really am’_

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton moved over towards his voice, not unaware of the insecurity he laid out in front of him.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Okay. Then, you don’t have to.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He moved his hands upward, as if holding someone as he closed his eyes.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I won’t look, I promise”, he spoke gently. “I feel like I’ve shown it enough now that I won’t judge you for how you look, Janus. But if you’re not comfortable with showing yourself, I won’t ask further. Just know that, I think you’re kind, funny and caring. Even if I can’t see you, I know you’re a good person. You’ve not done anything to cause me to think you’re not, and, I know asking for this is a lot, but, I really thi-“

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He gasped, feeling a pair of hands take his own, guiding one towards a shoulder, and one alongside his back, resting on his hips.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

The sensation send shivers down his spine, warm and tingling. In the time he was away from home, it never occurred to him how much he had longed for physical affection. Being so close to someone, being so close to Janus, being able to hold him, and to be held the way he was now, it was…

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Is this okay?” Janus whispered.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton nodded, eyes still closed.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“But” Janus let go of his hand, and for a moment, Patton thought he’d let go forever, only to feel his hand on his cheek once more. “You’re crying” he wiped away a tear Patton didn’t know had found his way across his face.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“It’s a good cry” he sighed against his hand. “I just didn’t know I missed this so much.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Crying?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He chuckled. “No, silly. Being held. Having someone close to you. I miss…I missed that, getting hugs and holding hands.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“So, I shouldn’t let go?” Janus’ voice was barely above a whisper, softer than all the times they had talked before.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Please don’t” Patton reached out, hand colliding with his chest and head reasting against his chin. Patton should have stepped back, let go of him immediately as soon as he invaded his personal space more.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

But he felt _warm_ , he felt _safe_ and cared for this close in his arms. Even when he felt him move, he retained his promise, keeping his eyes closed. Arms wrapped around him, gentle and firm, pressing him even tighter against him, and he could hear his heart beating along with Janus’, a steady rhythm to guide their dancing hearts even when their legs weren’t moving.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Slowly, he allowed himself to relax, to release the tension he had built up and as his hands traced his arms, feeling the soft fabric of his tunic, he landed on his back, startled only when he felt feathers brush against his hands.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Do you have…”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Yes. Are you…Scared? Of me?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton lingered on his secondary feathers, stroking them gently. “No, I don’t think so. They’re really soft.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He stopped, placing his hands back between his shoulder blades as he relaxed against him. 

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“That’s…not really what I expected you to say. Or do.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus dared lower his head, resting it alongside Patton’s.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Well, it feels…nice. Like, like home.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus’ barely held his composure, supressing a whine as Patton hummed in his arms. He sighed, the first knot of anxiety loosening in his stomach. As the two held each other close, Janus decided to go the next step.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Reluctantly, he pushed Patton away, taking his hands again, guiding them to where they were before.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Don’t panic” he spoke softly, placing a kiss on his hands, and Patton didn’t have to open his eyes to know the colour of his face did not match his clothes.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Quietly but steadily, music notes drifted into the night sky, lyres and flutes having appeared from thin air.  
Janus gently pulled Patton forward, guiding him in the dark. “Do you still want to-“

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Yes” Patton followed him blindly, quite literally.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus looked around as he and Patton shuffled around the garden. The many ornaments that filled the space before had vanished, instead making sure there was enough open space for Patton to dance around in, for which he was grateful.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I remember there being a fountain over here” he said smiling. “Did that somehow disappear or is my sense of orientation that bad?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I moved it, yes. I didn’t want you to hurt yourself, since you’re still keeping your eyes closed” he replied as he spun Patton around happily.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He pranced around with Janus as his guide, smile as wide as ever. “I promise you, I won’t open my eyes unless you want me to.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“Not…yet.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton leaned in closer, closer than was needed to dance. “That’s okay. This is perfect too.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“You really think so?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I mean, I’m dancing with someone I care about, and I am really enjoying myself, so, I’d say this is pretty good.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He let their foreheads touch, smiling contently as he felt Janus’ hairs brush against his face.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“You…care about me?” he asked surprised.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I-, yeah” he exclaimed. “I like you. I really do.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

You… _like_ someone like me?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I do. Do you not….like me? Am I intruding too much?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“No, not at all, I-“ 

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Janus stopped in the middle of the garden, right back where they had started. “I really like you too, Patton.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Patton turned up to face him, and as much as he wanted to look him in the eyes, as easy as it was to cheat and sneak a glance, he decided against it, content with just being close.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

He could feel Janus’ move his arms away, cupping his face instead. In the darkness, he could feel his breath against his skin, and even though he was the blind one here, he could see where this was going.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

So he let him come nearer, closing the gap that Janus was hesitant to start crossing in the first place, as he let his lips touch against his.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

Some part of him screamed to not do it, to run away because who knows what Janus really looked like, a face to match the wings on his back?

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

But Patton’s heart held the upper hand, and has he deepened the kiss, he could tell his lips were as soft as his wings. If Janus really was a monster, then someone should go and redefine what that meant, for the man he exchanged breaths with was far from it.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

After an eternity of being so near, Janus was the first to back away.

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“I’m sorry.”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“For what?”

__****________ _ _ _ _ ** ** _ _

“For tricking you like this. It’s…it’s not fair.”  
“How is this not fair?” Patton tried to reach for his face, but could tell Janus wouldn’t let him. 

“I wanted this. This was of my own choice.”

__

“No, it’s not”, Janus sighed, misery filling his voice. “You’re not brought here because you wanted to, you’re not staying here because you wanted to. It’s not fair, to you, to be forced to be here against your will. You’re being tossed around by fate, and that’s cruel, and wrong, and-“

__

Tears started to form in his eyes as his voice started to break. _“I’m_ cruel and wrong.”

__

Patton grabbed his hands, even when he weakly resisted.

__

“Janus, I may not have been brought here by choice, but would you tell me no if I asked to leave?”

__

“I-“

__

“Would you?”

__

“No. But the gods-“

__

“Said I needed to be taken away. Not to where, not for how long and not that I couldn’t return. Right?”

__

Janus managed to hold back a sob. “Right.”

__

“Are you cruel to me? Have you hurt me? Have you threatened to throw me in a dungeon or eat me alive?”

__

“…No.”

__

“Did I scream in fear when you kissed me?”

__

“I suppose not.”

__

“Then why are you so cruel to yourself?” he brought his hands close to his chest. “Can you not see that I’m here because I want to? To be with you?”

__

Janus closed his eyes, feeling Patton’s heart beat underneath his fingertips.

_>_

_Pink. Dark pink. Love._

__

“But your family. You miss them.”

__

Patton would have looked startled if he wasn’t pressed close against his chest once more.

__

“Of course I do”, he sighed. “I miss them more every single day. But this”, he gestured towards their shared housing, “this is my home too. And I want to live here. With you.”

__

“Yet, you will be unhappy without them.”

__

“I-“ Patton dipped his head. “I will always miss them, no matter where I am.”

__

Janus bit his lip, the taste of Patton’s still there. He shouldn’t be considering this, not even in the slightest. Every part of him screamed ‘NO!’

__

“Did you mean what you said? That you’d want to stay here?”

__

“Yes”, he replied firmly. “No doubt about it.”

__

He rubbed his thumbs over his hands as he assured himself of the right decision. No takebacks, no second guessing. An offer is an offer.

__

“Would you like a visit from them, then?”

__


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before I go to the TW, I'd like to clarify Roman's pronouns here. Even though he's the goddess of Love, he doesn't care much about pronouns and in this chapter he will be using he/him and they/them pronouns.
> 
> That being said, TW are in the notes at the end now to avoid some spoilers, so be sure to check that out if you're worried about something!

“Tell me again why I come over every single time?” Remus sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

He let his eyes wander over the palace, all bright and shiny with flowers and mirrors as far as he could see. Yet nothing could ever be more boring.

“Because secretly you love it”, Roman teased as they draped a new shawl over their shoulders.

He crosses his arms, silver bracelet over his bicep shining in the already overly bright palace. “I have no idea what you’re saying.”

“Come now Remus, you and I both like to see what the latest fashion is.”

They tossed him a bright green tunic embroidered with silver. “This one’s from Southern Persia, I think it’s your style.”

“As if.”

“Then why are you already wearing it?”

Remus looked down, the piece of clothing reaching down to his calves. “Fairly sure you did that.”

“If you don’t like it you can take it off, you know.”

“Well if that is what you w-“

“Nope!” Roman sternly waved a finger at him. “Bad choice of wording, that’s on me.”

“Glad you realise that too”, he grinned.

Roman took off his shawl and grabbed a scroll laying on the table next to him, scanning his list of duties for the day.

“You don’t have to wear it if you don’t like it, you know. If you’re bored, you don’t have to keep me company” they spoke again, having seen the compiling amount of work that needed to be done.

“Ro” Remus pranced over to them, “How long have we known each other, decades, centuries, millennia. We’re like brothers, right?”

“Only because for some reason people think your face is the epitome of beauty every sixty years or so.”

“First of, ouch, you know we’re handsome. Second of all, if I truly didn’t want to be here, I’d already be elsewhere. There’s no rhyme or reason to what I do.”

“I know, I know. You just _do_. Sometimes I’d wish I could be as carefree as you.”

“Well, what’s stopping you?” Remus leaned against the table, twirling the moustache he kept as wild as possible. “You’re _the_ goddess of Love, Roman. When’s the last time you had a vacation?”

“A vacation?” Roman furrowed their eyebrows, sifting through the storage of memories amassed since the dawn of time. “Well, I went to Krete to lay on the beach all day.”

“That was over a hundred years ago, and you were there for business, along with Jan.”

“Oh. Right. Pasiphae”, Roman grimaced. “I’d rather not think about that poor woman again.”

“Yeah, gods and their dicks, right? But the point is, you’re always working, why not have some _fun_?”

“Remus, you know I can’t just abandon my duties like that.”

“Your son could” he muttered under his breath.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I said even the _sun_ could.”

“Whoah, whoah, whoah, babes. At least tell me what it is I could do.”

Remy halted right outside the palace steps, chariot tied to a pillar.

“If it isn’t the shiny prick himself” Remus rolled his eyes. “What a coincidence you show up the second I mention the sun.”

“Babes, not my fault I have perfect timing.”

“Not that we’re not happy to see you,” Roman subtly put his shawl over Remus, pulling him back before he could cause an eclipse.

“But why would the Sun god grace us with his person today?”

“What, can’t a god visit some old pals?” Remy put up his best smile.

Remus chuckled, still held back by Roman. “Do you always ask rhetorical questions? Not to mention, what the Hades is on your face?”

“What, this?” Remy reached for the accessory on his face. “I call em sunglasses, or ‘shades’. Adds to the vibe, sis.”

Unimpressed, Roman loosened his grip on Remus.

“Okay, maybe it also helps with the intense glare of my light, can’t blame me for being me.”

He walked over to them, arm held above his head as he propped himself against a pillar. “But really, I just wanted to talk.”

“Talk?” Roman put a hand to their hips. “About who?”

“Why do you assume it’s about someone?”

“Cause 9/10 it’s you, you’re talking about.”

“Ouch” Remy put a hand to his chest. “I’m hurt, babes.”

“Are they wrong?” Remus said nonchalantly, knowing the answer was definitely no.

“You got met there. But honestly, I just wanted to talk to my old pal Zephy, bury the hatchet, rekindle our friendship, make peac-“

“Stop” Roman let go of Remus. “If you want to make a mess like last time, do it somewhere else but here.”

“We would neve-“

“Two words, lads. _Mud. Wrestling_. Not in my house, not again. There are tapestries I still need to burn after last time you had a ‘friendly chat’.”

They gathered their array of garments and scrolls, walking towards the hallway. “Thanks for stopping by Remus, appreciate it. See you next week?”

“You got it, Ro-bro” he waved as Roman disappeared further into the palace.

“Are they gone?” Remy whispered after a couple of minutes.

“Think so” Remus walked towards the chariot, gesturing for Remy to get on and find somewhere else to talk. “So, what’s the real reason you wanted to see me. I meant what I said last time.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’d slice and dice me, I get it. That wasn’t funny the first time you did it.”

“I found it rather entertaining” he smirked, wind soaring through his hair.

“Dude, the mortals thought the world was ending with that scarlet red sun.”

“They thought the same thing when you pissed off your sister so much there was a blood moon, yet they’re still alive, aren’t they?”

“Touché, wind god. Touché.”

“Now, quit beating around the bush. What’s the sitch?”

“Your pal, that’s what’s the sitch.”

“Who, Janus? What did he do this time?”

“Aside from kidnapping that prince?”

“Ah”, Remus floated near the horses pulling the chariot. “So you know.”

“Babe, I’m the sun god. You think I don’t see what’s going down there? Not to mention the prophecy was literally about him?”

“Point taken, sun god. What about it?”

Remy pulled at the reigns, choosing a steady galop for his horses. “The kid’s brothers came to Delphi about it. They were lucky enough to find me there before they could consult the Oracle.”

“Remy, please don’t tell me you told them everything” Remus grunted, hands sliding over his face in desperation.

“Relax, I’m not a tattle tale. However, I did, maybe, kind of…”

“Quit the bull, Remy.”

“I told them I’d tell you and you could deliver a message to Janus.”

“You what” Remus appeared right in front of him, and if he weren’t as transparent the way he travelled through the air, Remy would have been flying blind.

Not that Remus wasn’t willing to gauge his eyes out, but that didn’t matter that much.

“What in the world makes you think that! I am _not_ a second rate Hermes! Ask him to deliver messages!”

“I didn’t say you would actually willingly do it.”

“It sure sounds like it!”

Remy saw wisps of grey form around him, glare intensifying with it. “I said you _might_ be willing to do so, _if_ they could find you, and convince you.”

“And how would they do that?”

“Simple, I told them to fight you.”

The air pressure around him dropped and he could feel the wind slowing down, his horses having to exert more effort than before.

“You told them what.”

“You heard me.”

“You realize, they’re mortals, right?”

“What, so you won’t do it?”

Remus grinned, a sharp flash of white visible as he shifted around the chariot.

“I never said that. But boy, am I going to have some fun! I haven’t tormented people like this in _ages_! I have to say, that’s pretty brave, or stupid, of them. I like that!”

“Oh really” Remy stumbled forward as his horses managed to regain their previous gallop. “I wouldn’t have guessed that.”

“When and where did you tell them to meet me?”

“Same place Jan took the prince. Not making it that difficult. As for time, somewhere this week. Didn’t specify to be a bit more mysterious and ominous.”

“Remy, I could _almost_ forgive you!” Remus beamed with excitement.

“Remus, that was so long ago when will you ever let that go!?”

“Never!”

Remus twirled around, leaving Remy behind as he flew around the endless sky, searching for the hillside the two men would be waiting.

The gears in his head starting turning, trying to come up with all kinds of new ways to test them, to see what lengths they would go. He wouldn’t hurt them. Badly. If Janus found out he did, he would lose his closest friend. Remus was chaotic, but he did have some rules and boundaries.

As he settled down above the city, he noticed two figures standing on the mountainside, one in purple walking circles in the grass, the other in blue, sitting next to him.

Today was going to be so much _fun_!

“What if he doesn’t show?”

“Well, if he doesn’t show today, he might tomorrow. Or the day after. We still have 4 days, Virgil.”

“Yes, but, what if he was here two days ago, and we missed him?” he trampled the grass even more, yet carefully avoiding the flowers around the path he had created.

Logan but the book he was holding down in his lap. “It takes at least 2 days of travel to get from Delphi back here. Even the gods are reasonable enough to know we can’t magically appear wherever we want. I’m fairly certain Zephyros hasn’t shown up in our absence, knowing we couldn’t possibly have made it back during that time frame.”

Virgil finally stopped pacing around, instead sitting himself down next to his husband, resting his head on his shoulder.

“Thank you.”

“For what?” Logan smiled as he traced the back of his neck.

“For grounding me. For being here, with me.”

_“Urgh, I didn’t know I would throw up my lunch when I heard you were looking for me.”_

Virgil jumped up from the ground, knocking Logan square in the jaw at the sound of the unknown voice.

“Who’s there?” Logan asked, rubbing his cheek as he looked around.

“Take a wild guess, mortal. You’re the one that asked for me.”

Remus landed a few feet behind them, sending dandelion seeds and flower petals adrift as he took on a more corporeal form, blending into the scene with his new outfit.

“Are you….The West Wind? Zephyros?” Virgil asked hesitantly, hand reaching for Logan’s.

“Did you ask Remy for anybody else but me? I wouldn’t like to have been brought here for nothing, you know.”

“No, of course not! We’re just…surprised?”

“What, am I not god like enough for you?” Remus cast him a dark look, hair slowly flowing in the breeze.

It took all of Virgil’s willpower not to turn around and flee, every instinct in his body telling him this was madness, conversing with him, attempting to _convince_ him by _fighting_.

Yet, as he watched the lavender fields below the mountain ripple, he focused on the reason why they were there in the first place.

“You’re god enough, we’re not doubting that”, he steadied his voice, shoulders less slouching than they normally did.

“We’ve been waiting for a bit, you just caught us by surprise. Forgive me for being jumpy. It’s not everyday a god blesses us with a meeting.”

Remus drifted over towards the two, feet a few inches above the grass. “I’d say you have had plenty of visits lately, not everyone as handsome as me, of course. Isn’t that right?”

Logan moved in front of Virgil, keen to keep his hands away from the swords hanging from his belt as to not make any moves he would instantly regret. “So, Remy conveyed the intention of our call?”

“Hmm, he did say you are very much not keen on staying alive.”

“We never said _that_!”

“Hey, I don’t make the rules. Oh, wait, I do!”

Remus buzzed from one place to another, disappearing and reappearing as he explained more. “You said you were down with fighting me? To impress me? So I can go and deliver a message to your _pwoor wittle bwother_?”

He squeezed Virgil’s cheeks as he grinned with mischief. “Ywes. Will ywou helwp wus?”

“Honey, you haven’t even shown me anything that could convince me to do that!”

“You also haven’t given us any rules or chances to do so” Logan gently tried to pry Virgil away from his hands. “We were told we would need to engage in a fight with you as a means to show our dedication. So, are you accepting this challenge? Unless, you don’t want to be defeated by mere mortals.”

“Logan, are you trying to get us killed already?” Virgil shoved him backwards. “Why are you teasing him like this??”

“Just, let me handle this, okay?”

“Well?” he called out to the wind god.

“Oh I gladly accept!” Remus gleamed. “So, what will it be?”

He conjured various types of weapons, all looking just as menacingly. “I’ll give you the courtesy to choose, since I’m a god and your backs will snap like twigs anyway. If you’re more interested in some exotic weapons, I can give you a _khopesh_ instead of a _xiphos_ , or do you prefer a _sfendonai_? I’m more for close combat myself, but you do you, of course. I’m cool if you want to add a shield too, since I don’t want to hit you straight in the chest right away, because that would be so boring and-“

“Why is the more peaceful ones of the wind gods so…violent?” Virgil muttered as Remus continued listing different options.

“No idea, but it’s” Logan watched the selection grow more and more”….impressive, somehow.”

“But neither of us is as talented as our soldiers are, especially not with…whatever those things are. We’re going to get killed before we can even pick one of those up.”

“I don’t think that will be the case, dearest.”

“…but that aside, I think you have weapons to spare, don’t you think?” Remus finished displaying his collection, twirling what seemed to be a kopis in his hands.

“You say I can choose anything? Any form of combat?”

“Not that anything would save you dorks, but yes, that is the point.”

“Very well.” Logan moved about the weaponry, inspecting them all one by one until he had rounded them all and declared his pick:

“I choose chess.”

“Fantasti-, wait what did you just say?” Remus stopped, dropping his sword.

“I said, I choose, chess.”

“Nononono” Remus waved his hands, shaking his head in bewilderment. “You need to pick something to _fight_ with, that’s the rule.”

“As I recall, you said we were supposed to engage in battle. You never specified it was a _physical_ fight. Chess is a battle of intellect and wit, and therefore qualifies as a fight.”

“You conniving human” Remus motioned for the weapons to disappear, teeth that were too pristine and sharp for any human to have bared at Logan. “Clever. Very clever.”

“Do you accept these terms?” Logan swallowed down the rising fear in his throat as he could see the god’s eyes darken like the sky in the horizon.

“Fine, I accept.”

He snapped his fingers, a chessboard and pillows for himself and Logan shooting up from the ground.

“Not to be rude, but shouldn’t Virgil be offered a seat next to me?” he pointed at his designated side.

Remus gave him a wry smile, his expression unreadable. “If I recall correctly, please forgive me since it’s been a while since I’ve played, chess is a two player game.”

“That is a correct assessment,” Logan hesitantly took his seat, eyes searching for Virgil but finding him absent to where he was before.

“I’m afraid Virgil can’t play” he pouted, “But, you can’t leave any challenger out, can you?”

“Logan!” Virgil’s terrified voice called out.

Logan spun around, trying to find his husband. As he scanned the meadow they were in, he spotted him, suspended far off the ledge on ground that was not there before. He noticed he sat on a throne, his crown having appeared on his head out of nowhere.

“What is the meaning of this?” he demanded.

Remus simply slid down behind his side of the board, arranging the pieces. “The way to win chess, is to put the king of your opponent in a position where they can’t make any more moves under pains and penalty of capture, right?”

“Yes, what does that have to do with-“

“Virgil is technically a king, as soon as you take the throne from your own parents, correct?”

“Yes! Why does that matter?”

“Well, Logan, the way I see it, the two of you challenged me, and in a game of chess, there’s only two players. But that’s not fair, is it? So, why not make it a bit more…. _exciting._ ”

“Exciting how?” Logan moved over towards the ledge, noticing a checkered pattern on the ground.

“You two love birds are so cute” Remus gagged. “What’s better than have you defend your king, by defending your king!”

“Are you saying…”

Realization struck as he saw his hybris catching up with him, pleading with Virgil through silent words for forgiveness.

“Real life chess, isn’t it” he turned back to Remus, seeing how his own king was coloured a familiar purple instead of white.

The god laced his fingers together, resting his chin on top of them. “It’s very simple. You and I play a round of chess. For every piece I capture, minus the king, a space of his ‘board’ disappears. That leaves 15 spaces for Virgil to rest upon. If I have captured every piece, or, if I win with checkmate already, we’ll get to test how well you featherless bipeds can fly.”

“This is insane. This was not the deal!”

“Neither was tricking me into playing chess, nerd. But, I suppose you don’t have to agree to these conditions.”

He leaned back nonchalantly, and Logan didn’t know what unnerved him more: Remus’ menacing gaze, or his laid back appearance.

“I don’t?”

“Of course not. I’ll just be taking my leave. I hope Patton knows how much you care, since, I won’t be telling him.”

“No wait!” Virgil called from his marble throne. “He’ll do it.”

“Virgil, you can’t be serious” he exclaimed, not wanting to continue for even a second. “I won’t gamble with your _life_.”

“Logan, he’s our only chance to get to him”, his voice cracked with misery. He took a deep breath, putting everything he had in his faith.

“I know you can beat him, Logan. I trust you.”

Logan clenched his jaw, trembling fists now resting at his sides as he tried not to lash out at the grinning god. Now was not the time for emotions taking the upper hand. What he needed now wasn’t bravery or brawn.

“Alright then.”

He sat down across from Remus, taking a pawn in his hand and putting it forward. “Your move, Zephyros.”

“Please” he mirrored Logan’s pawn, “call me Remus.”

“Do all you gods just take on new names?” he moved another pawn. “Or are you just keen on confusing us?”

“Every so often we get bored. Not to mention we have many different names. In essence we cover a lot of things all of you humans worship. The sun, the moon, the winds. _Love_.”

Remus moved a knight towards the edge of the board, face remaining neutral. “Some things are universal, yet we deities are not. You have the Egyptians, the Persians, the Indians, the Northern regions... you name it, and everyone has divisions of their own. Once in a while, we like to remember we are who we are, before we fade away, forgotten by those who used to keep the fires in our temples lit.”

“That is…” he hovered above a pawn and a knight. “That was a lot more meaningful than I thought you were going to say.”

“Everyone thinks that.”

Remus eyed the newly placed knight Logan had just put down, and pondered over the decision.

“Everyone underestimates me” he moved his bishop towards it, and a rumbling of stone and sand could be heard to the side as a block dissipated around the corner of Virgil’s board.

Logan suppressed the urge to leap towards the edge, instead focusing on his own board. “You gods do the same with us, too.”

“How so?” Remus glanced back as the dust settled.

Logan maneuvered his own bishop towards the spot his knight previously resided at.

“Ah, not bad, you won a piece. Congratulations.”

“Can I ask for another addition to the rules?” Logan watched Remus select his next move.

“And what would that be?”

“For every piece I win, you give us a piece of information.”

“About?”

“Whatever I choose.”

“Hmm.” Remus captured a pawn, breaking his defence-line. He watched another block crumble to dust as he set the piece aside. “Fair enough. What is you first question then?”

“Is Patton safe?”

“I’m sure he is.”

“That’s not an affirmation.”

“I never said I knew the answer to every question you have, human.”

Logan observed the board, calculating ways to fix his errors. Capturing more pieces was a good way to gather information, but risking exposing Virgil would also become greater. As he weighed his options, he saw how Remus was doing the same.

Weren’t it for the fact lives were at stake, he might have enjoyed playing with the god. Emphasis on might.

As the sun lowered above their heads, more and more pieces were captured, both black and white. So far, Logan had managed to gather Patton was alive, unharmed and receiving adequate amounts of food and water. However, the available space for Virgil to reside on was also rapidly shrinking.

Even with the added information, they still had no idea where he was or even what corner of the world the serpent took him. Logan tried to form a plan, a way of getting to know more, to do more. He fiddled with a pawn he took from Remus a while ago as he deliberated further.

He was down to a few pieces, and his primary focus went to protecting his king. He knew gaining more opportunities to ask questions was a good way to do so, but he couldn’t form questions formulated well enough to be useful, too distracted by the game itself and the shrinking land around Virgil.

As he recalled the events of the past few months, he thought of a more suiting question to ask.

If, he could capture another piece.

“You’ve been quiet for a while now, Logan. Scared you’re going to lose?” Remus taunted him.

“On the contrary” he placed his rook to the left side of the board, taking Remus’ last bishop to get out of check. “I’m just thinking of my next move and question.”

“Shoot, Pocket-Protector.”

“Who did the serpent take him to?”

“I told you I don’t know where he is exactly” Remus stated firmly as he moved his king around.

“That’s not what I’m asking” he waved aside the statement. “I’m asking _who_ he’s with. The serpent was supposed to take him to find someone suitable for marriage, wherever that may have been. You don’t know where that is, but do you know who he is with?”

“You’re asking some interesting questions, I’ll give you that.”

“Then answer them”, Logan in return moved his queen to his left, seeing where Remus was going.

“He’s with him.”

“With whom?”

“Who do you think, smart ass?” Remus let his hand glide above his pieces.

“You’re not suggesting…Is he holding him hostage? Why?”

“Ah ah ah” Remus brandished a rook in front of his nose. “One question per capture.”

He set down the rook, hands gesturing towards the board. “Check.”

Virgil let out a shriek as there was only one block underneath his throne remaining, the view of the waves crashing against the rocks below him dizzying him. If he wasn’t stuck to it, he might have fallen out of the chair himself.

His panicked appearance unnerved Logan all the more, even when he reassured him it was okay.

“You got this darling” he smiled at him confidently. “I’m still here. You still got your king.”

“Not for long if he keeps this up”, Remus grinned a wide smile. “He doesn’t have much left.”

“Neither do you, but I don’t need more than these to win” he bluffed as both sides were reduced to a king and queen.

“True, true, you can try all sorts of maneuvers”, Remus sat up, stretching his legs. “I’ll be nice for once and let you take your time with that one. Got some errands to do while you do that.”

“You’re going to leave an unfinished game?”

“I’m just taking a break, relax, I’m not scamming you. I’ll come back and I won’t drop emo nightmare over there to the ocean floor. Yet.”

“You are trusting me to not cheat and change the board? That’s seems likely. Where will you be going?”

“Nunya.”

“Nunya?”

“Nunya business, dork.”

He brushed off the dirt from his clothes, making sure the green was as vibrant as ever. “As for trusting you won’t cheat,”

He moved up a hand, a column of clouds forming above Virgil’s head. “You wouldn’t dare double cross a god.”

With that, the clouds disappeared along with him in the blink of an eye, leaving Logan and Virgil to wait for his return.

Logan fell backwards onto his pillow, grunting as he rubbed his eyes. “Virgil, I am so, so sorry.”

“For what?” he called back.

“For being an idiot”, he sighed. “He’s going to win.”

“Hey, pessimism is my thing. Get your own.”

Logan gave him a wry smile, touched by the uplifting remark. “It’s not pessimism. It’s just realistic.”

He sat up again, explaining his options to Virgil. “I know he has me in check again. I believe he wants me to take his queen to get out of it.”

“Well, that means you can ask one more question, right? So that’s good.”

“But it’s also my _last_ question. I can’t ask more than one thing and we still don’t know enough about the situation.”

“You don’t have to go that far, Lo. If you can win, that’s already enough for us to get through to Patton.”

“But that’s the thing” Logan muttered exasperatedly. “Remus has already shown how important formulating your questions is. He agreed to let _us_ send a message to _Patton_ but…”

“We never asked if Patton could reply” Virgil cursed at the realization. “He’s been playing us from the start.”

“It’s not about getting information anymore, it’s about trying to find a way to escape and make sure you’re safe”, Logan looked back at him, nervous about the one block keeping Virgil from death.

“And looking at my options, I don’t see any way to ensure that. I just….I made too many mistakes.”

“Hey, what did I say about pessimism?”

“It’s not pes-“

“That last part sounded a lot more loaded than just an objective fact, Logan. Tricking Remus into playing chess? That was incredibly smart.”

Logan couldn’t help but smile at the praise, the affirmation soothing some of his worries. “He’s still going to beat me. We didn’t stand much of a chance.”

“But you evened the playing field. I don’t think there are many mortals who can say they accomplished that.”

“Yeah, I suppose so.”

They looked up at the clouds, the edges slowly turning orange and pink, indicating Apollo was returning to the Sun Palace.

“Logan?”

Logan over towards him, heart heavy as he did so. “Yes, my prígkipas?”

“We both knew what we were attempting, what could happen if things went…sideways”, Virgil tried not to stare at the crashing waves below him, focusing instead on Logan.

“It’s already a miracle we came this far, and I still feel like I shouldn’t have dragged you into this with me.”

“You didn’t drag me with you, I dragged myself along.”

“Ass”, he chuckled. “I’m trying to create a heartfelt moment here.”

“Emotions”, Logan hummed. “Disgusting.”

“What I’m trying to say is, I appreciate it. I appreciate you and I love you more than I can say.”

“Why does that sound like a goodbye?” Logan crept closer towards the edge.

Virgil bit his lip, taking a deep breath. “We both know we can’t win this. But you can still try and ask one more question. Ask him…Ask him if we can bring him home. Doesn’t matter how or when, just, that he will. Eventually.”

“But”, Logan glanced back at the board, “We don’t know if he can answer that question. And then you will-”

“I know.” He tilted his head, the crown glistening in the remaining light of day. “But if it means that he’ll eventually come home, it’ll be worth it.”

“And what if he says no?” Logan now stood at the edge, reaching out to hold him, even with the distance between them. “Then it will have been for naught. I can’t….I won’t….”

“If Patton won’t ever return, then what’s the point?”

“You can’t just give up like that!” Logan protested. “What about how _I_ feel about this? About _you_?”

“We both know you can’t save me anymore”, Virgil clutched his stomach as his vision swayed when he risked a glance over the edge of his seat.

“I can still move around the board. I can keep my king safe, I can keep you safe” Logan tried to convince him, partly to reassure the one he loved the most, mostly to persuade himself.

“But you can’t keep your queen safe at the same time. At one point, either his queen takes yours, or it’s game over.”

He looked down at his throne, not being able to see the block keeping him from death. “I was gone for from the start, Lo.”

“Then…Then I won’t play anymore. I’ll give up.”

“You can’t give up!” Virgil protested. “We came all this way!”

“Yes, we came all this way _together_. I won’t be leaving without you!”

“Geez, I leave for five minutes and you’re already being this dramatic?”

Remus reappeared behind the board, stretching his arms . “So, what will it be, your highness?”

“I give up”, Logan didn’t even look back at Virgil. “I know what you’re going to do. I won’t risk Virgil’s life any longer. I won’t play anymore.”

The wind god chuckled, the sound airy, hollow and far off into the distance. It sounded wrong and right at the same time, when your sails finally catch wind at sea, only to send you in the wrong direction.

“Alright then.”

He snapped his fingers and Logan felt the air swirl around his clothes. “Wait, what is happening-”

“You don’t want to play? That’s okay”, Remus sat himself down, looking as the purple king started to show patches of blue.

“But _I’m_ not done playing yet.”

“No, stop!” Logan tried to move back towards the board, but found himself sitting on a throne, crown resting above his head as he saw Virgil taking his seat instead.

“What the H-“ Virgil gasped as he felt the soft cushion around him. “You can’t do this!”

“Au contraire” Remus hummed, “I _can_. A fight is a fight, and this one isn’t over. If Lo-Lo doesn’t want to play, then you’ll do so instead.”

“But I don’t play chess, not the way Logan does!” he yelled, taking in shorter breaths with every second.

“Do you know how to play?”

“I-“ Virgil tugged at his tunic, “I know the basics but-“

“Good” Remus pointed at the now blue king. “Your king is in check. Better do something about it.”

“I won’t sacrifice Logan like that”, Virgil steadied himself, voice sharp and determined. “I won’t play your fucked up game.”

“Aw, come on, that’s such a shame. And Patton was so worried about you, too.”

“You spoke to him? What did he say?” Virgil leaned over the board, almost toppling the kings and queens.

“Are you asking me questions? I’m fairly sure there was a rule about that”, he drawled in sing-song.

Virgil stared at the pieces, knowing there was a way to stall by playing, but stall for what? All it took was for Remus to take the queen, and Logan would be sleeping with the fishes. He knew Remus wasn’t going to take chasing him at random for long.

“What will it be, doom and gloom? Patton’s life?” he cast a glance towards the last crumbling block . “Or Logan’s?”

Virgil glared to his best abilities, knowing full well he couldn’t stand a chance against a god. As much as he wanted to know more, he wasn’t going to choose one over the other. If this was the end of his quest, then so be it. He wouldn’t go on without Logan, not like this.

“You can’t intimidate me like that.”

He pushed himself away from the board. “I don’t fall for tricks from gods. I won’t. Play.”

“Well, if you don’t hold up to your end of the bargain” Remus flicked his wrist, the game and pillows dissipating in a haze of green. He then trained his eyes on Logan, eyes shining as he gave Virgil a mischievous look.

“Then I won’t either.”

Virgil watched in horror as the throne crumbled along with the ground it rested upon. The shimmering crown was nowhere to be seen as Logan’s figure fell forward.

Logan closed his eyes, voice not finding the effort to scream as the air rang around his ears. He braced himself for the impact, not knowing what to think about as he fell to his death. Should he count the seconds? The passing time? Should he think about the life he had led? The achievements and failures?

He thought about his parents, his fathers who lovingly raised him to be the man he was today. He thought about his childhood, swimming in rivers. Water warmer than the ocean waiting to embrace him now.

He tried to look at the bright side, how ironic that was. At least the man he loved the most would be alright, at least he was safe, unha-“

“I’m so sorry!” 

Logan felt something collide with him. When he cracked open his eyes, he could register Virgil holding him, falling through the skies with him.

“Virgil are you mad!?” he cried, tears falling upwards.

“Yes, I am! I won’t let you go to Hades alone, you idiot! Till death do us part, remember?” he wrapped himself tighter against him, a small act of comfort.

Logan chuckled, sobs mixing in with laughter as he watched the blue waters come closer. “See you at Hades, then.”

He put his hands around Virgil, making sure that he was the last thing he would think about before death would come and embrace both of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mentions of a variety of weapons and slicing someone up, threats, being suspended over a cliff, falling, swearing, and I want to be sure I didn't gloss over this too much but the way Virgil is talking at some point can be seen as self deprecation and also suicide-ideation.


End file.
